Interface apparatus for semiconductor integrated circuit and interfacing method thereof

Abstract

An interface apparatus for a semiconductor integrated circuit and an interfacing method thereof controls the VOX of differential signals to a target level in response to the differential signals being outputted by an output block. The interface apparatus for a semiconductor integrated circuit includes an output block configured to output differential signals output by an internal circuit a detector configured to detect a timing error of the differential signals; and a controller configured to control a timing of the differential signals output by the internal circuit according to a detection result of the detector.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION[0001]The present application claims priority of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2009-0133391, filed on Dec. 29, 2009, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]Exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to a semiconductor integrated circuit, and more particularly, to an interface apparatus of a semiconductor integrated circuit and an interfacing method thereof.[0003]Recently designed semiconductor integrated circuits (ICs) require a high degree of integration, low power consumption, and a high operating speed. To fulfill these requirements, semiconductor integrated circuits are equipped with an interface apparatus for transmitting / receiving a signal / bar signal to / from an external circuit. Herein, the signal / bar signal includes a data signal and a data bar signal (that is, a logically inverted data signal), an address signal and an address bar signal (that is, a logically inverted addr...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0044]According to the first embodiment of the present invention, outputting the signal IN and bar signal INB with their VOX controlled to the target level improves the reliability of an interface apparatus of a semiconductor integrated circuit.

Problems solved by technology

When a voltage level VOX of a signal and a bar signal outputted by the output block are outside of a set range, a bit error may occur in an input block of an external circuit.

Since no conventional technology provides a method for directly detecting the VOX, the VOX is indirectly detected by detecting jitter.

When the VOX is converted into a time domain, it becomes jitter, and the fact that the cross point of a signal and a bar signal between a power source voltage VDD and a ground voltage VSS varies with a swing level indicates that a timing error has occurred.

However, the conventional technologies have a drawback in that the interpolation and oversampling processes are too complicated to be simply realized in the output block.

Moreover, since the output block characteristically occupies a large volume and since it includes a circuit having a high power consumption, the output path through which a data is outputted by the output block to an external circuit takes less time than an input path through which data is inputted from the input block to the internal circuitry of an integrated circuit.

Therefore, it is difficult to add a circuit requiring a delay.

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